#i loved writing this little story

[kymsys]

'It was late spring, the first time all year that the sunshine had any real strength behind it. Satoru was wittering on about something inane as always — Tentomon or something equally ridiculous.

There was nothing special about the moment. Not really. Except for the fact that Satoru had shrugged off his jacket in the heat. It was draped around his shoulders just so, exposing the long column of his throat, pale after a long winter. Really, there was nothing special about the moment. But when Suguru looked at the boy silhouetted against the spring sky, bright and blue and boundless and beautiful — just like his eyes, Suguru thought — his heart skipped a beat all the same. With all the sight afforded to him, Satoru never missed a thing. So it was risky, what Suguru did. Later, when he was looking at his new phone wallpaper under the cover of darkness, grinning like an idiot, he'd wonder how he ever got away with it. Yet, if Suguru's yearning to capture that perfectly ordinary moment forever was stronger than all reason, perhaps it was stronger than the Six Eyes, too. After all, not even Satoru could stop time.' - by my beloved @fushiglow ♥

(( also glo says: FUN FACT! Tentomon is voiced by Suguru's VA — ergo it's Satoru's favourite Digimon, obviously )) ---------------------------------------------------------

freshly added headcanons: • gojo at some point randomly barged into sugurus room and put glowy stickers all over his ceiling • suguru has gojo as his phone wallpaper, but keeps it a secret • suguru is a hamasaki ayumi fan • the cinnamoroll phone charm is from gojo who spent almost an eternity getting that out of a gatcha machine for him • they were happy

[bluerosefox]

Her Astrophel and Sterling

hmmm

Hmmmmmmmm

You know what.

You know those AU's where the Batfam finds or learns about either hidden or thought to be dead Al Ghul Danny! with a deaged/daughter Dani (Ellie) (I should know, I created a few of those storylines) but what if, now hear me out, what if instead of them finding Danny first its Talia.

Do I want Talia discovering her thought to be dead son to be alive? Yes. Do I want her to find him while investigating Amity Park when the League gets reports of 'Lazarus creatures/water'? Yes.

DO I WANT HER TO KNOCK ON THE FENTON'S DOOR, fully ready to pretend/honey talk her way into the house to uncover what the Fenton's know, ONLY TO MEET A LITTLE ELLIE?!

YES.

Ellie whose eyes and hair look like a copy of her Beloved but she can see bits and pieces of herself as well. Talia knows the child in front of her was not fully her's though but everything makes sense when she hears a voice, a voice she hasn't heard in ages but as a mother just knows, speak out.

"Ellie! I thought I said do not answer the door my Sterling."

"But Daddy, yous was busy fighting the hotdoggys!"

Talia's eyes widen when she finally catches sight of familiar black hair and blue eyes.

and she could only lightly whisper a old nickname she hasn't dared uttered in ages, a name she secretly gave her son due to his love of the stars "Astrophel..."

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Happy Birthday to Fallen London; My favourite British people beefing it with bats simulator.

[awearywritersworld]

mdni

prisoner!toji x prison doctor!reader, anyone?

the first time you meet him, it's because he busts his knuckles so badly in a fight that he needs stitches.

"had i known there was such a pretty little thing hiding back here, i'd have done this a lot sooner."

the only response you offer is a roll of your eyes.

despite your evident disinterest, he visits the infirmary much more frequently after that day. the next time, he swears he feels ill and that there's something going around his cellblock.

"so, why's a nurse like you working in a place like this?"

"doctor."

"doctor, hm?" he muses. "i guess i really don't have a shot, then."

you let out a breath, something between a laugh and a scoff. the pads of your fingers prod at the lymph nodes below his jaw, and you conclude that he's probably feeling just fine. "not a chance."

a week later, he hurts his shoulder while weight lifting in the prison gym.

"you should really be more careful," you chide, rather confident his small winces aren't for show.

"if it means i get to see your pretty face, why should i?"

it's unbelievably inappropriate the way heat rises to your cheeks, but you can't help it.

so for the next two months, you just ignore it.

you ignore the easy conversation that seems to flow between the two of you. you ignore when his hand brushes against your thigh as you press your stethoscope to his chest. you ignore the fact you look forward to his visits.

but late one night, he's brought to infirmary after a fight with his cellmate. his eye is black, his lip is split, and his knuckles are bloody.

and you think fate must have it out for you, because you can't ignore it anymore. not when he's pushing you against the wall, a medical tray clattering to the floor in his haste. not when his lips devour yours hungrily, his grip on your hips brutal and unforgiving. not when he's sighing your name against your mouth, his soft tone a stark contrast to his actions.

finally you gather yourself enough to pull away, to ask him what the hell he's doing.

it doesn't matter though, because it's too late. you've had a taste of him, and you are so unimaginably screwed.

[waddles-ex-machina]

some more comic panels I liked :>

[silverysongs]

I had a thought while reading Persuasion - this book is SAD, and it's sad because of the juxtaposition between the past and the present. Anne is constantly (at least in chapter 8) comparing her memories of her time with Wentworth to the events happening in front of her: their affection vs. unacquantaince, her former lack of knowledge about the navy (until Wentworth informed her) vs. the Musgroves' lack of knowledge now. with all that said - I think a different film adaptation of Persuasion could actually do the Greta Gerwig Little Women flashback/vignette trope REALLY well. i just want cute little scenes of younger Anne/Frederick being affectionate and then flashing back forward to the present! the warm lighting of the past contrasted with the cold lighting of the present. and then that cold blue light turning warmer and richer as the story progresses.

[shrimpchipsss]

read Living With a Tiger by x_los !

[eskawrites]

gay fanfiction save me. gay fanfiction. save me gay fanfiction

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

I came here for the silly haha doodles, but I've stayed for the absolutely blazing commentary in the tags. Your analysis of this story is so so so good! Thanks for all the work and thought you put into this!

I am just a silly little comics blog. I am not hiding anything in the tags, no way. Never.

[copiiialover]

ৎ୭ — Uncertain Future – ৎ୭

Title: Uncertain Future

Pairing: Park Gyeong Seok / Cho Hyun Ju Synopsis: With Young-mi's death haunting her and an uncertain future ahead, Hyun-ju and Gyeong-seok allow themselves to comfort each other. Tags/Possible Warnings: Canon Divergence, One-Shot, Trans Character, Slight Transphobia, Grief/Mourning, Hurt/Comfort, Developing Relationship, First Kiss, Holding Hands.

⸻ ⸻ ⸻ ⸻ ✧ ⸻ ⸻ ⸻ ⸻

“Round and round. Round and round.

Let’s go around in circle and dance.

We will clap our hands and sing.

We will clap our hands and sing.

Let’s have fun dancing!”

The music echoes through the huge room and the carousel spins again and again as its center lights up before returning to the dim darkness.

“We will go hand in hand

and have fun jumping around.”

Hyun-ju opens the green door and looks at the clock inside. The countdown has almost reached zero, there is no time to waste.

“Young-mi, over here!” she shouts, waving her hand to get her attention, but there is no response from the girl. She just keeps standing there, spinning by the carousel, still and staring blankly. Why doesn't she run to her? Time is about to run out… “Young-mi!” she insists, opting this time to leave the tiny room to go look for her, but the carousel has stopped and a soldier is walking in her direction. The distance seems to shorten, or so she thinks, until a twinge of pain in her chest makes her stop.

“Young-mi!” she sobs in a whisper as she wakes up from that horrible dream, before the pink soldier snatched her life away. The darkness welcomes her and a lump tightens her throat. It was all a dream. “Young-mi…”

Hyun-ju waits for the owner of that name to answer, but there is no response from the empty bed of the shy girl.

Tears slide down her cheeks and she brings her hands to her face, realizing she is covered in a cold sweat. Behind her eyelids she visualizes Young-mi on the floor, begging with a muffled cry for help that never came.

A sob shakes Hyun-ju's body and guilt and helplessness flood her head again, at least until Geum-ja's voice catches her attention. Hyun-ju removes her hands from her face and guides her gaze to the old lady and the pregnant girl standing in front of Gi-hun.

Leaving the fort made to protect them from danger is almost a suicide mission in the hostile environment created by the players, but how can they be deprived of something as necessary as going to the restroom?

“Gi-hun” she calls the player, attracting the attention of the three of them to her. Their silence in her presence reminds her of her face covered in tears. She doesn't want anyone to see her like that. With that in mind she wipes away her tears with the back of her hand. “I can go with them..” she suggests and can almost swear she has felt the relief of both women, who look at Gi-hun for approval.

Gi-hun looks around, then at Hyun-ju. Without objection, the former winner nods. It's no secret to anyone that Gi-hun trusts her blindly after risking her life to save that unfortunate man in the first game.

Geum-ja leads the way to the bathroom, walking fearfully and looking back and forth beside Jun-hee, almost like a pair of deers in a vast forest full of hunters. Hyun-ju follows in their footsteps, aware of the division between the players and how it has turned the place into a battlefield where war could break out in an instant. However, she no longer seems to care.

Is it because of that steely character that led her to her position in the army? She chooses to attribute it to that even though, deep down, she knows that her lack of concern stems from the emptiness that Young-mi's death has left in her. She is no longer afraid of dying. She's known that ever since the carousel stopped for the last time, when instead of running to find another player to survive, she simply stood still. If it weren't for Gyeong-seok, she would already be dead.

“Please, let us go to the bathroom!” Geum-ja pleads, snapping her out of her thoughts and drawing her attention to the door in front of them. A pink soldier stares quietly at them through the window. “I'm an old woman, I can't control my bladder, please!” the old lady insists and Jun-hee seconds her request.

Hyun-ju thinks about pleading along with them, but that's not necessary when the pink soldier opens the door. Hyun-ju watches the two women enter the hallway, but when it's her turn her steps are interrupted by the pink soldier, obstructing her passage with his gun. Hyun-ju expects to hear some stupid rule about the number of people allowed to go to the bathroom, but there is no objection from the soldier.

“Hey, what are you doing?” Geum-ja calls out to the pink soldier, but he doesn't even flinch. “Let her in, she's with us!” The soldier remains still and Hyun-ju finally understands the situation. At what point has she forgotten that only a couple of people in that place see her as the woman she is? A tired sigh leaves her lips.

“It’s okay, don't worry” she asks the old lady, forcing herself to smile in an attempt to convince the woman that it doesn't affect her, although deep down she relives again the pain she felt when she was called a pervert the first time she tried to enter a women's restroom. At least the soldier is forced to remain silent. “Please go. I'll be here when you get back, okay?”

Geum-ja looks at her sadly, almost as if she really understands the pain that simple action can cause to someone like her. Hyun-ju just thinks about what it would be like to have a mother like her and be loved in the same way that woman loves her son.

When Geum-ja and Jun-hee disappear from her sight, Hyun-ju has no choice but to start her way to the men's room. She thinks about going back to bed since she doesn't really feel like going to the bathroom, but she knows she can't leave Geum-ja and Jun-hee alone. The possibility of being alone for at least a moment is the only incentive to go on her way.

As she opens the door and looks inside, she can't help but wish for the first time in her life that those horrible urinals were the only thing welcoming her instead of that pair of jerks.

“Hey, what are you looking at, huh? Do you miss yours?” Thanos asks her, grabbing his dick over his sweatpants. Nam-gyu laughs, shoving Min-su between them with his shoulder as an invitation to join in their glee. The poor boy is shaking from head to toe.

Hyun-ju is repulsed by them for making her remember her time in the army and the cruelty of some of her fellow soldiers to those they considered weaker or inferior. She knows that confronting them is not a problem, but she doesn't want to do it. They are not worth it and she is so tired. To her good fortune and relief, from one of the cubicles emerges Hwang In-ho, who needs only one look and a stony silence to force Thanos and his lapdog to abandon Min-su and leave, but not before passing by Hyun-ju and trying to intimidate her without any success.

Hyun-ju and In-ho look at each other for a moment, but there is no exchange of words between them, just a brief nod from Hyun-ju as some kind of silent pact between them. Not that she's really grateful to him, but any help in a place like that is welcome. A moment later, just as he appears, In-ho leaves without a word.

Silence fills the air and Hyun-ju feels a knot in her stomach as the music of that hellish game begins to echo in her head again. Will she ever forget it? Not having an answer makes the crying threaten to return, but she doesn't let it. In an attempt to distract her mind, she lets the water flow into the sink and cradles some in her hands to wash her face. She looks in the mirror and a frazzled reflection stares back at her; it is as if she has aged ten years in a single night. No, not one night; barely a couple of hours after....

“Unnie...”

Her lips tremble and the cry bursts out of her, forcing her to back up against the wall of one of the cubicles as her legs threaten to give way and make her fall. She slides against the wall to the floor and folds her legs against her chest, hugging herself in an attempt to gain some comfort. Her body shakes with each sob and once again she wishes she had been the one to die in that game, but even the greatest of wishes won't bring Young-mi back.

She hides her face against her knees and allows herself to cry, until a warm hand rests on her shoulder. All the alarms in her go off and she reflexively grabs the wrist of the one in front of her.

“G-Gyeong-seok?” she asks, staring at him. The man looks back at her in surprise, but makes no attempt to break free from her grip. “I'm sorry...” she mumbles, releasing him and feeling embarrassed by her reaction when Gyeong-seok rubs his wrist.

“I didn't mean to scare you, I'm sorry…” he apologizes. How could he blame her for a reaction like that in a place where you're just another number piling up to a big prize. “Are you okay?” he asks with genuine concern.

Hyun-ju nods and is grateful that Gyeong-seok keeps enough distance to make her feel safe and comforted at the same time. Though his presence has never really felt like a possible threat.

“What are you doing here?” she asks, though the question seems silly being in a bathroom.

“I went to look for you in your bed, but you weren't there…” he reveals, sitting down next to her against the wall. “Gi-hun told me you were here.”

Hyun-ju just nods even though that doesn't quite answer her question.

“Why were you looking for me?” she asks, looking at the man's profile and that soft but noticeable smile as he tilts his head, as if he's suddenly embarrassed for some reason.

“I wanted to make sure you're okay, and…” he pauses, then looks at Hyun-ju. “...I guess I thought you'd like to have someone to talk to.”

For the first time since they returned to the dorm, Hyun-ju allows herself to smile softly.

“Thank you, but I'm afraid I don't really have much to say right now…” she admits even though she's lying, but what's the point of reliving that nightmare over and over again.

Gyeong-seok nods and remains silent, leaning back against the wall. Hyun-ju wishes she could stay there, enjoying the company of someone else who isn't looking to end her life, but maybe Geum-ja and Jun-hee are already waiting for her to return.

“Hyun-ju…” Gyeong-seok's voice breaks the peaceful silence, attracting her attention. “I know we hardly know each other but... can I ask you a favor?”

Hyun-ju looks at him in bewilderment. It's true that all they know about each other are their respective names, but he has saved her life twice. It's only fair to reciprocate in some way.

“Of course…”

“I have a little girl who is waiting for me out there,” Gyeong-seok murmurs, but pauses again, as if wondering whether he should continue or not. “She has leukemia and… She will die if I don't pay for her treatment...” His voice breaks as he says it and Hyun-ju feels his pain in every word.

At first she hesitates to do so. She doesn't know Gyeong-seok well enough, but at that moment there are no words that can offer any comfort. Therefore, with the present fear of the rejection she has received on so many occasions, Hyun-ju rests her hand on his and squeezes it gently.

To the former military woman's surprise, Gyeong-seok looks at her hand and holds it tightly. He looks into her eyes and Hyun-ju can see the gratitude in his gaze.

“I know I won't get out of here alive...” he murmurs and this time his eyes fill with tears. “But I know you will. I know you will…”

“Gyeong-seok...” she interrupts him, feeling her heart constrict. “I don't…”

“Please, just…” he takes her hand in his and pleads: “Just visit her and tell her... Tell her that I love her and that she's been the best thing that ever happened to me…”

Hyun-ju can't help but bring her hand to his face and brush away his tears.

“I'll do what I can... I... I'll do what I can…” she promises, caressing his cheek and allowing herself to enjoy the mutual comfort they give each other when he places his hand over hers on his cheek.

“She's going to be so happy when she sees you,” he murmurs, puzzling Hyun-ju. “She always asked me when I would marry a beautiful woman to walk together in the park like everyone else....”

Hyun-ju feels the heat rise in her cheeks even though she knows it's just a kind comment from him. After all, Geum-ja didn't lie when she said he's like a prince. However, that gesture of kindness takes on a new meaning when Hyun-ju feels a warm caress on the back of her hand.

They stare into each other's eyes for a moment, until Gyeong-seok leans closer carefully, giving her a chance to pull away if that's what she wants. Hyun-ju remains in place, closing her eyes only when the distance between them is null and Gyeong-seok's lips meet hers.

It's a chaste kiss, almost a simple brush of lips, but it's enough to make her feel a shiver run through her body. They look at each other and this time there is no hesitation. Their lips meet once more in a slow kiss that escalates to a needy kiss in an instant, with both of them seeking that warm contact they both seem to desire so much.

Hyun-ju slips her fingers through Gyeong-seok's hair and he grabs her waist, pulling her closer to him and seeping his hand underneath her shirt. His warm, gentle touch on Hyun-ju's skin makes her moan softly against his lips and she wishes she had more; she wants to feel Gyeong-seok's hands all over her body, but the loud banging against the door forces them apart.

“Players one hundred and twenty and two hundred and forty-six, go back to the dormitory!” exclaims the pink soldier on the other side of the door.

Hyun-ju and Gyeong-seok look at each other as they are dragged back to that reality of an uncertain future. Their hearts pound against each other's chests and they regret having met in that place.

Against their mutual desire, they both stand up and walk towards the door, but Hyun-ju grabs his hand to stop him. He looks at the union of their hands, then at her.

“Gyeong-seok, don't die out there, please...” she begs. He looks into her eyes and a fleeting sadness shadows his face. They both know that a promise is useless in a place like that.

“Then let's stay together and survive...” Gyeong-seok replies, allowing himself to kiss her one last time. “I want to draw your beautiful face when we get out of here, Hyun-ju.

She blushes and nods, and with that last promise they leave the bathroom. Geum-ja and Jun-hee greet them in the hallway and Hyun-ju can't help but smile when the older woman betrays her excitement by hugging them.

“Oh, you two look so cute together! Don't you think so, Jun-hee?” she exclaims, to which the girl only nods.

Hyun-ju blushes even more and, to her surprise, Gyeong-seok takes her hand to start the walk back to the dorm.

One more day of life is uncertain and they know it, but at that moment, with both of them lying on the same bed and holding hands, they allow themselves to believe in the possibility of surviving and getting out of there together.

⸻ ⸻ ⸻ ⸻ ✧ ⸻ ⸻ ⸻ ⸻

English is not my native language, so please excuse any mistakes.

Please consider leaving a comment here or on the original fanfic posted on AO3:

[thebluewritingbench]

you & me in the wreckage

a supercorp ficlet

written for @ekingston's flash fiction challenge! :)

this was fun!! the prompts i got were: thriller, only survivors of a zombie apocalypse, celebrity/just some guy (gender neutral), and blood. thematically consistent, at least. tw for (a fairly small amount of) blood and gore, unsurprisingly. enjoy!

+

Someone is breathing on the other side of the vehicle.

No, Kara reminds herself yet again. Something.

It’s hard to say when the simple sound of another creature breathing became an instant trigger to send adrenaline coursing through her veins. Every tiny hair on her body rises. Her heart rate accelerates until she can feel it behind her teeth, a war drum. She moves with utmost caution; she cannot make a sound.

There’s a creak of metal. A low groan.

Kara recognizes the sound. The pleading moan of perverse hunger.

She can’t see it, as she creeps around the passenger side of the dark vehicle. The thing must be inside the car. The sound came from low down, though. Maybe it’s on the ground. Unsurprising—they always seem to end up there in the end. After having exhausted the limits of human muscle, with no prey left to chase down, they collapse like expended cargo.

The car is a solid black Rolls-Royce. A rare sight in the city, let alone out here. This one has seen better days, though. Shiny paint marred by dust, pock-marked with dents, half the bumper hanging off. How it ended up swerved into the ditch of this rural, two-lane road is a mystery.

Probably someone trying to escape.

Kara’s mind constructs the story even as she rounds the front of the car, reaching for her weapons. It must have contained someone wealthy or important, someone with the resources to get this far. But they must have been infected before they could escape. Though shaken, they would have attempted to brush it off. Nothing but a scrape. The teeth had barely punctured their skin. They would have sped away, gotten off the interstate at the first chance, taken turn after turn until they found a safe, isolated road. This is how far they got before the alien pathogens hijacked their brain.

But that would mean—Kara’s pulse spikes again—that would mean the creature on the other side of this vehicle is the most dangerous kind. Starved for the taste of human flesh. Not spent, but with the full power of the human body. When used without regard for muscles tearing, flesh rending, bones breaking, it could do remarkable things.

Kara knows. She has witnessed it.

The way Alex moved, when the disease took hold…

She shudders. Pushes the image from her mind. That thing hadn’t been Alex anymore.

Kara considers her weapons. A large kitchen knife. A small handgun—the better bet. Not much ammunition left, though. She’ll have to move quickly. She’ll have to make it count.

She lifts the gun, then lunges around the front of the car and fires.

The shot echoes across the scrubby hills. A shriek rings out, black hair flying as the creature shields itself. It begins to turn to her. She missed. Kara’s finger is pushing down on the trigger again when a voice cries, “Wait! Wait!”

She wrenches the gun aside. Her shot flies wide.

There is nothing but heaving breathing in the wake. Human breathing.

The woman crouched on the ground, staring up at Kara in terrified shock, is alive. Truly alive. What’s more, Kara knows her.

 “How are you here?” Kara says. The cognitive dissonance of seeing that face here, now, is so intense that she wonders if she’s hallucinating.

“What?” says Lena Luthor. “Why are you trying to kill me? Do I know you?”

We’ve met before.

“No.” Kara feels herself flush. How absurd that she’s even capable of such a reaction anymore. “I’m nobody.”

Lena Luthor stands on unsteady legs. “No, you’re that reporter. From… BuzzFeed, was it? You came to my office with Clark Kent.”

“CatCo Magazine,” Kara corrects automatically. It feels like a lifetime since she was Cat Grant’s assistant, barely daring to aspire to journalism. Struck nearly speechless by the presence of this woman—her inarguable celebrity crush.

Embarrassing.

Lena looks uneasily at the gun. Kara realizes it’s still pointing in her direction. She drops her arm. “Shoot. Sorry.”

“Don’t shoot, preferably,” Lena says dryly. It takes a second for Kara to realize it’s a joke.

“I wasn’t trying to— I thought you were… one of them. You’re not infected, are you?”

“None of them have touched me. This thing is bullet-proof. I did plow through a few of them…” Lena looks queasy. Kara follows her gaze to the front of the car. There’s blood congealed on the grill.

A flash of memory. She sees the creature that was once Winn charging at her. Her panicked swipe of the kitchen knife across its throat. The spray of his blood, copious, vibrant, across her shirt, across the pavement. For hours, she was terrified the blood had found its way into some scrape, some opening. Infecting her.

She grimaces, presses her thumb hard into the space between her eyes. Stop.

“Where did you even come from?” Lena says. “There’s nothing around here.”

“I walked from the city. I’ve been trying to find anywhere with supplies. There was a group of us. I’m the only one left.” That awful, leaden truth. Kara pushes past it. “How did you get out? I haven’t seen anyone else in weeks.”

“I hid in my office. I had it outfitted as a kind of bunker years ago. I thought I was being insane at the time, and yet…” She trails off, ashamed. “I did nothing to help. Nothing. I stayed there until it quieted down. Then I took the car, and I ran.”

“You couldn’t have done much. No one could have.”

“And now my stupid tire blew, and I am somehow incapable of changing it, so I’m pretty much fucked.” Lena kicks the deflated tire. “Fuck!”

“Your tire?” Belatedly, Kara notices the spare lying on the ground, alongside a toolbox and a badly misplaced jack. She feels a wild urge to laugh. That’s it? “I can fix your tire.”

“Really?”

“Of course.” She swallows. Remembers that somehow, Lena Luthor is standing in front of her. A woman who Kara has followed extensively in tabloids for years. A world leader for tech. Generous. Brilliant. Beautiful. “On one condition.”  

“What’s that?”

“Take me with you.”

Lena Luthor leans against her car and, miraculously, grins. She gives Kara a lingering once-over. “Where are you going?”

“Anywhere. Away from here. I need to find out what happened to my cousin. And my mom.”

“Well, I could use the company,” Lena says. “It’s a deal.”

She holds out her hand. Kara shakes it. At the feel of Lena’s hand in hers, warm, chapped, alive, Kara feels a spark of something she hasn’t felt for ages, since before her life turned into a nightmare.

Hope.

[greenbloods]

but the thing is that penny's relationship with tyrion in adwd can only be understood as a reflection of jaime and brienne's relationship in asos. the romance isn't quite there: tyrion explicitly rejects penny, something remarkable considering his mental state during this time. but we see how tyrion and jaime both see themselves in their younger, more naive female counterpart, and through their own desire to protect this person from the cruelty of the world how they learn to extend to themselves the empathy which theyve explicitly seen themselves as undeserving of for so long.

[eyrieofsynapses]

why Aurora's art is genius

It's break for me, and I've been meaning to sit down and read the Aurora webcomic (https://comicaurora.com/, @comicaurora on Tumblr) for quite a bit. So I did that over the last few days.

And… y'know. I can't actually say "I should've read this earlier," because otherwise I would've been up at 2:30-3am when I had responsibilities in the morning and I couldn't have properly enjoyed it, but. Holy shit guys THIS COMIC.

I intended to just do a generalized "hello this is all the things I love about this story," and I wrote a paragraph or two about art style. …and then another. And another. And I realized I needed to actually reference things so I would stop being too vague. I was reading the comic on my tablet or phone, because I wanted to stay curled up in my chair, but I type at a big monitor and so I saw more details… aaaaaand it turned into its own giant-ass post.

SO. Enjoy a few thousand words of me nerding out about this insanely cool art style and how fucking gorgeous this comic is? (There are screenshots, I promise it isn't just a wall of text.) In my defense, I just spent two semesters in graphic design classes focusing on the Adobe Suite, so… I get to be a nerd about pretty things…???

All positive feedback btw! No downers here. <3

---

I cannot emphasize enough how much I love the beautiful, simple stylistic method of drawing characters and figures. It is absolutely stunning and effortless and utterly graceful—it is so hard to capture the sheer beauty and fluidity of the human form in such a fashion. Even a simple outline of a character feels dynamic! It's gorgeous!

Though I do have a love-hate relationship with this, because my artistic side looks at that lovely simplicity, goes "I CAN DO THAT!" and then I sit down and go to the paper and realize that no, in fact, I cannot do that yet, because that simplicity is born of a hell of a lot of practice and understanding of bodies and actually is really hard to do. It's a very developed style that only looks simple because the artist knows what they're doing. The human body is hard to pull off, and this comic does so beautifully and makes it look effortless.

Also: line weight line weight line weight. It's especially important in simplified shapes and figures like this, and hoo boy is it used excellently. It's especially apparent the newer the pages get—I love watching that improvement over time—but with simpler figures and lines, you get nice light lines to emphasize both smaller details, like in the draping of clothing and the curls of hair—which, hello, yes—and thicker lines to emphasize bigger and more important details and silhouettes. It's the sort of thing that's essential to most illustrations, but I wanted to make a note of it because it's so vital to this art style.

THE USE OF LAYER BLENDING MODES OH MY GODS. (...uhhh, apologies to the people who don't know what that means, it's a digital art program thing? This article explains it for beginners.)

Bear with me, I just finished my second Photoshop course, I spent months and months working on projects with this shit so I see the genius use of Screen and/or its siblings (of which there are many—if I say "Screen" here, assume I mean the entire umbrella of Screen blending modes and possibly Overlay) and go nuts, but seriously it's so clever and also fucking gorgeous:

Firstly: the use of screened-on sound effect words over an action? A "CRACK" written over a branch and then put on Screen in glowy green so that it's subtle enough that it doesn't disrupt the visual flow, but still sticks out enough to make itself heard? Little "scritches" that are transparent where they're laid on without outlines to emphasize the sound without disrupting the underlying image? FUCK YES. I haven't seen this done literally anywhere else—granted, I haven't read a massive amount of comics, but I've read enough—and it is so clever and I adore it. Examples:

Secondly: The beautiful lighting effects. The curling leaves, all the magic, the various glowing eyes, the fog, the way it's all so vividly colored but doesn't burn your eyeballs out—a balance that's way harder to achieve than you'd think—and the soft glows around them, eeeee it's so pretty so pretty SO PRETTY. Not sure if some of these are Outer/Inner Glow/Shadow layer effects or if it's entirely hand-drawn, but major kudos either way; I can see the beautiful use of blending modes and I SALUTE YOUR GENIUS.

I keep looking at some of this stuff and go "is that a layer effect or is it done by hand?" Because you can make some similar things with the Satin layer effect in Photoshop (I don't know if other programs have this? I'm gonna have to find out since I won't have access to PS for much longer ;-;) that resembles some of the swirly inner bits on some of the lit effects, but I'm not sure if it is that or not. Or you could mask over textures? There's... many ways to do it.

If done by hand: oh my gods the patience, how. If done with layer effects: really clever work that knows how to stop said effects from looking wonky, because ugh those things get temperamental. If done with a layer of texture that's been masked over: very, very good masking work. No matter the method, pretty shimmers and swirly bits inside the bigger pretty swirls!

Next: The way color contrast is used! I will never be over the glowy green-on-black Primordial Life vibes when Alinua gets dropped into that… unconscious space?? with Life, for example, and the sharp contrast of vines and crack and branches and leaves against pitch black is just visually stunning. The way the roots sink into the ground and the three-dimensional sensation of it is particularly badass here:

Friggin. How does this imply depth like that. HOW. IT'S SO FREAKING COOL.

A huge point here is also color language and use! Everybody has their own particular shade, generally matching their eyes, magic, and personality, and I adore how this is used to make it clear who's talking or who's doing an action. That was especially apparent to me with Dainix and Falst in the caves—their colors are both fairly warm, but quite distinct, and I love how this clarifies who's doing what in panels with a lot of action from both of them. There is a particular bit that stuck out to me, so I dug up the panels (see this page and the following one https://comicaurora.com/aurora/1-20-30/):

(Gods it looks even prettier now that I put it against a plain background. Also, appreciation to Falst for managing a bridal-carry midair, damn.)

The way that their colors MERGE here! And the immense attention to detail in doing so—Dainix is higher up than Falst is in the first panel, so Dainix's orange fades into Falst's orange at the base. The next panel has gold up top and orange on bottom; we can't really tell in that panel where each of them are, but that's carried over to the next panel—

—where we now see that Falst's position is raised above Dainix's due to the way he's carrying him. (Points for continuity!) And, of course, we see the little "huffs" flowing from orange to yellow over their heads (where Dainix's head is higher than Falst's) to merge the sound of their breathing, which is absurdly clever because it emphasizes to the viewer how we hear two sets of huffing overlaying each other, not one. Absolutely brilliant.

(A few other notes of appreciation to that panel: beautiful glows around them, the sparks, the jagged silhouette of the spider legs, the lovely colors that have no right to make the area around a spider corpse that pretty, the excellent texturing on the cave walls plus perspective, the way Falst's movements imply Dainix's hefty weight, the natural posing of the characters, their on-point expressions that convey exactly how fuckin terrifying everything is right now, the slight glows to their eyes, and also they're just handsome boys <3)

Next up: Rain!!!! So well done! It's subtle enough that it never ever disrupts the impact of the focal point, but evident enough you can tell! And more importantly: THE MIST OFF THE CHARACTERS. Rain does this irl, it has that little vapor that comes off you and makes that little misty effect that plays with lighting, it's so cool-looking and here it's used to such pretty effect!

One of the panel captions says something about it blurring out all the injuries on the characters but like THAT AIN'T TOO BIG OF A PROBLEM when it gets across the environmental vibes, and also that'd be how it would look in real life too so like… outside viewer's angle is the same as the characters', mostly? my point is: that's the environment!!! that's the vibes, that's the feel! It gets it across and it does so in the most pretty way possible!

And another thing re: rain, the use of it to establish perspective, particularly in panels like this—

—where we can tell we're looking down at Tynan due to the perspective on the rain and where it's pointing. Excellent. (Also, kudos for looking down and emphasizing how Tynan's losing his advantage—lovely use of visual storytelling.)

Additionally, the misting here:

We see it most heavily in the leftmost panel, where it's quite foggy as you would expect in a rainstorm, especially in an environment with a lot of heat, but it's also lightly powdered on in the following two panels and tends to follow light sources, which makes complete sense given how light bounces off particles in the air.

A major point of strength in these too is a thorough understanding of lighting, like rim lighting, the various hues and shades, and an intricate understanding of how light bounces off surfaces even when they're in shadow (we'll see a faint glow in spots where characters are half in shadow, but that's how it would work in real life, because of how light bounces around).

Bringing some of these points together: the fluidity of the lines in magic, and the way simple glowing lines are used to emphasize motion and the magic itself, is deeply clever. I'm basically pulling at random from panels and there's definitely even better examples, but here's one (see this page https://comicaurora.com/aurora/1-16-33/):

First panel, listed in numbers because these build on each other:

The tension of the lines in Tess's magic here. This works on a couple levels: first, the way she's holding her fists, as if she's pulling a rope taut.

The way there's one primary line, emphasizing the rope feeling, accompanied by smaller ones.

The additional lines starbursting around her hands, to indicate the energy crackling in her hands and how she's doing a good bit more than just holding it. (That combined with the fists suggests some tension to the magic, too.) Also the variations in brightness, a feature you'll find in actual lightning. :D Additional kudos for how the lightning sparks and breaks off the metal of the sword.

A handful of miscellaneous notes on the second panel:

The reflection of the flames in Erin's typically dark blue eyes (which bears a remarkable resemblance to Dainix, incidentally—almost a thematic sort of parallel given Erin's using the same magic Dainix specializes in?)

The flowing of fabric in the wind and associated variation in the lineart

The way Erin's tattoos interact with the fire he's pulling to his hand

The way the rain overlays some of the fainter areas of fire (attention! to! detail! hell yeah!)

I could go on. I won't because this is a lot of writing already.

Third panel gets paragraphs, not bullets:

Erin's giant-ass "FWOOM" of fire there, and the way the outline of the word is puffy-edged and gradated to feel almost three-dimensional, plus once again using Screen or a variation on it so that the stars show up in the background. All this against that stunning plume of fire, which ripples and sparks so gorgeously, and the ending "om" of the onomatopoeia is emphasized incredibly brightly against that, adding to the punch of it and making the plume feel even brighter.

Also, once again, rain helping establish perspective, especially in how it's very angular in the left side of the panel and then slowly becomes more like a point to the right to indicate it's falling directly down on the viewer. Add in the bright, beautiful glow effects, fainter but no less important black lines beneath them to emphasize the sky and smoke and the like, and the stunningly beautiful lighting and gradated glows surrounding Erin plus the lightning jagging up at him from below, and you get one hell of an impactful panel right there. (And there is definitely more in there I could break down, this is just a lot already.)

And in general: The colors in this? Incredible. The blues and purples and oranges and golds compliment so well, and it's all so rich.

Like, seriously, just throughout the whole comic, the use of gradients, blending modes, color balance and hues, all the things, all the things, it makes for the most beautiful effects and glows and such a rich environment. There's a very distinct style to this comic in its simplified backgrounds (which I recognize are done partly because it's way easier and also backgrounds are so time-consuming dear gods but lemme say this) and vivid, smoothly drawn characters; the simplicity lets them come to the front and gives room for those beautiful, richly saturated focal points, letting the stylized designs of the magic and characters shine. The use of distinct silhouettes is insanely good. Honestly, complex backgrounds might run the risk of making everything too visually busy in this case. It's just, augh, so GORGEOUS.

Another bit, take a look at this page (https://comicaurora.com/aurora/1-15-28/):

It's not quite as evident here as it is in the next page, but this one does some other fun things so I'm grabbing it. Points:

Once again, using different colors to represent different character actions. The "WHAM" of Kendal hitting the ground is caused by Dainix's force, so it's orange (and kudos for doubling the word over to add a shake effect). But we see blue layered underneath, which could be an environmental choice, but might also be because it's Kendal, whose color is blue.

And speaking off, take a look at the right-most panel on top, where Kendal grabs the spear: his motion is, again, illustrated in bright blue, versus the atmospheric screened-on orange lines that point toward him around the whole panel (I'm sure these have a name, I think they might be more of a manga thing though and the only experience I have in manga is reading a bit of Fullmetal Alchemist). Those lines emphasize the weight of the spear being shoved at him, and their color tells us Dainix is responsible for it.

One of my all-time favorite effects in this comic is the way cracks manifest across Dainix's body to represent when he starts to lose control; it is utterly gorgeous and wonderfully thematic. These are more evident in the page before and after this one, but you get a decent idea here. I love the way they glow softly, the way the fire juuuust flickers through at the start and then becomes more evident over time, and the cracks feel so realistic, like his skin is made of pottery. Additional points for how fire begins to creep into his hair.

A small detail that's generally consistent across the comic, but which I want to make note of here because you can see it pretty well: Kendal's eyes glow about the same as the jewel in his sword, mirroring his connection to said sword and calling back to how the jewel became Vash's eye temporarily and thus was once Kendal's eye. You can always see this connection (though there might be some spots where this also changes in a symbolic manner; I went through it quickly on the first time around, so I'll pay more attention when I inevitably reread this), where Kendal's always got that little shine of blue in his eyes the same as the jewel. It's a beautiful visual parallel that encourages the reader to subconsciously link them together, especially since the lines used to illustrate character movements typically mirror their eye color. It's an extension of Kendal.

Did I mention how ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL the colors in this are?

Also, the mythological/legend-type scenes are illustrated in familiar style often used for that type of story, a simple and heavily symbolic two-dimensional cave-painting-like look. They are absolutely beautiful on many levels, employing simple, lovely gradients, slightly rougher and thicker lineart that is nonetheless smoothly beautiful, and working with clear silhouettes (a major strength of this art style, but also a strength in the comic overall). But in particular, I wanted to call attention to a particular thing (see this page https://comicaurora.com/aurora/1-12-4/):

The flowing symbolic lineart surrounding each character. This is actually quite consistent across characters—see also Life's typical lines and how they curl:

What's particularly interesting here is how these symbols are often similar, but not the same. Vash's lines are always smooth, clean curls, often playing off each other and echoing one another like ripples in a pond. You'd think they'd look too similar to Life's—but they don't. Life's curl like vines, and they remain connected; where one curve might echo another but exist entirely detached from each other in Vash's, Life's lines still remain wound together, because vines are continuous and don't float around. :P

Tahraim's are less continuous, often breaking up with significantly smaller bits and pieces floating around like—of course—sparks, and come to sharper points. These are also constants: we see the vines repeated over and over in Alinua's dreams of Life, and the echoing ripples of Vash are consistent wherever we encounter him. Kendal's dream of the ghost citizens of the city of Vash in the last few chapters is filled with these rippling, echoing patterns, to beautiful effect (https://comicaurora.com/aurora/1-20-14/):

They ripple and spiral, often in long, sinuous curves, with smooth elegance. It reminds me a great deal of images of space and sine waves and the like. This establishes a definite feel to these different characters and their magic. And the thing is, that's not something that had to be done—the colors are good at emphasizing who's who. But it was done, and it adds a whole other dimension to the story. Whenever you're in a deity's domain, you know whose it is no matter the color.

Regarding that shape language, I wanted to make another note, too—Vash is sometimes described as chaotic and doing what he likes, which is interesting to me, because smooth, elegant curves and the color blue aren't generally associated with chaos. So while Vash might behave like that on the surface, I'm guessing he's got a lot more going on underneath; he's probably much more intentional in his actions than you'd think at a glance, and he is certainly quite caring with his city. The other thing is that this suits Kendal perfectly. He's a paragon character; he is kind, virtuous, and self-sacrificing, and often we see him aiming to calm others and keep them safe. Blue is such a good color for him. There is… probably more to this, but I'm not deep enough in yet to say.

And here's the thing: I'm only scratching the surface. There is so much more here I'm not covering (color palettes! outfits! character design! environment! the deities! so much more!) and a lot more I can't cover, because I don't have the experience; this is me as a hobbyist artist who happened to take a couple design classes because I wanted to. The art style to this comic is so clever and creative and beautiful, though, I just had to go off about it. <3

...brownie points for getting all the way down here? Have a cookie.

[inkskinned]

it is all chaos and entropy. the thing is that the chaos and entropy make it beautiful and lovely.

yes, it's true that nature and the universe are uncaring and unspecific, and that is terrifying. i have lived through some of the unfairness - i got born like this, with my body caving into itself, with this ironic love of dance when i sometimes can't stand up for longer than 15 minutes. i am a poet with hands that are slowly shutting down - i can't hold a pen some days. recently i found a dead bird on our front porch. she had no visible injuries. she had just died, the way things die sometimes.

it is also true that nature and the universe are uncaring and unspecific, and that is wonderful. the sheer happenstance that makes rain turn into a rainbow. the impossible coincidence of finding your best friend. i have made so many mistakes and i have let myself down and i have harmed other people by accident. nature moves anyway. on the worst day of my life she delivers me an orange juice sunset, as if she is saying try again tomorrow.

how vast and unknowing the universe! how small we are! isn't that lovely. the universe has given us flowers and harp strings and the shape of clouds. how massive our lives are in comparison to a grasshopper. the world so bright, still undiscovered. even after 30 years of being on this earth, i learned about a new type of animal today: the dhole.

chance echoing in my life like a harmony between two people talking. do you think you and i, living in different worlds but connected through the internet - do you think we've ever seen the same butterfly? they migrate thousands of miles. it's possible, right?

how beautiful the ways we fill the vastness of space. i love that when large amounts of people are applauding in a room, they all start clapping at the same time. i love that the ocean reminds us of our mother's heartbeat. i love that out of all the colors, chlorophyll chose green. i love the coincidences. i love the places where science says i don't know, but it just happens.

"the universe doesn't care about you!" oh, i know. that's okay. i care about the universe. i will put my big stupid heart out into it and watch the universe feast on it. it is not painful. it is strange - the more love you pour into the unfeeling world, the more it feels the world loves you in return. i know it's confirmation bias. i think i'm okay if my proof of kindness is just my own body and my own spirit.

i buried the bird from our porch deep in the woods. that same day, an old friend reaches out to me and says i miss you. wherever you go, no matter how bad it gets - you try to do good.

[jonsnowunemploymentera]

And remember kids, the next time someone tells you, "George R. R. Martin wouldn't make Jon Snow the typical fantasy hero because that's cliche".....

Oh yes he would!

One viewer wants to know what character would you play (on the show)? GRRM: If I could magically clap my hands and become a different person, it would be cool to play Jon Snow who's much more of the classic hero. Everybody wants to be the classic hero! ABC Interview, 2014

GRRM: And the character I’d want to be? Well who wouldn’t want to be Jon Snow — the brooding, Byronic, romantic hero whom all the girls love. Meduza Interview, 2017

In fact he already has ☺️

[the-bi-space-ace]

Echo is proof that someone out there cares. There will always be people who care and will fight the good fight and will come when they are called. They will go where there are needed. Someone out there is seeing injustice in the world and is doing the work to ensure that as many people as possible can be saved, can be given a chance at a life.

Despite the fact that he's suffered so much already he didn't hang it up and check out. He knows suffering, understands it, and never wants it to happen to anyone else. Everything he went through never made him cold or callous. It didn't make him apathetic to the plight of others. Instead his suffering only made him kinder, stronger, wiser. He knew the clones were suffering and instead of hiding, instead of checking out when he could have, he decided he was going to rescue them. Someone came for him when he needed them. He will do the same for others. And he's connected to a whole network of clones fighting for the same thing. Forming a community, protecting people, creating a life for the clones and making that possible even in incredible dark times.

That feels really difficult to believe sometimes. That someone out there does actually care and will actually do something. But those people exist. There are more of them than you think.

Echo is proof that good still exists. That someone will be in your corner. That no matter what happens you'll always have an ally who will risk everything to give others a chance to survive. The clones have always been such a main focus for him, people he cares so deeply about. He could never sit idly by and let them be experimented on and die at the hands of the empire.

In a galaxy that has forgotten about the clones Echo never has.